


honey blood

by disepherous



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Akira flirts a lot, Alternate Universe - Vampire, Blood Drinking, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Vampire Akira
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-29
Updated: 2017-10-05
Packaged: 2019-01-05 07:18:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12185457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/disepherous/pseuds/disepherous
Summary: Two familiar arms wrapped around his middle as something cold nuzzled into his neck. He felt Joker breathe in deeply. His neck tingled in discomfort.“Mm,” Joker hummed. “You smell nice today.”Akechi frowned and pulled away, leaving a good amount of space between them. “Don't give me that nonsense. I told you not to bite so high up.”Joker recovered quickly, sliding his hands into the pockets of his pants. He tilted his head and looked at Akechi amusingly. “What, did someone notice?”Akechi felt a flash of heat trail up his face. “No,” he said. “I noticed it myself. This isn't a part of our deal.”He watched as Joker shrugged; a careful movement despite the nonchalance of it all. “I might have gotten a little carried away last time.” He moved to lean against the wall. “Sorry.”It hardly sounded like he meant it at all.





	1. one

**Author's Note:**

> don't be fooled by the title it's a vampire au but in actuality it's mostly a normal au feat. vampires bc the vampire thing isn't really that important oops! there's not much of a plot i just wanted to write out the idea that spurred me to create this thing.
> 
> i'm dedicating this to my friend, who encouraged me to keep writing this even though i kept complaining about how terrible i thought it was. u know who u are.

An endless amount of paperwork and documents were spread across Akechi’s desk. His eyes tiredly roved over each sentence, word, and letter of the overly familiar events of his previous cases from the past two weeks. An overwhelming amount of text he couldn't care less about, let alone bother to read.

“I didn't realize you were still working, Akechi-kun.” A familiar voice finally broke him from the madness.

Akechi looked up from the mess of his desk, eyes meeting a familiar female form. He blinked once, twice, until he tilted his lips upward a careful degree, eyes crinkling as he closed them. A smile.

“Sae-san,” he greeted, giving his voice a polite and pleasant lilt. As if he was pleased to see her. “What brings you down here? I thought you had a case at the courthouse all afternoon.”

“I came to prepare for next week’s trial,” Sae looked at him in a way that constantly unnerved him. “It’s already evening, you know.”

Had he been pouring over his work for that long?

“So it seems,” he answered, rising up to gather the mess on his desk into something more manageable. “These case files were just so fascinating that it appears I've lost track of the time.”

Sae sighed as she tucked some stray hairs behind her ear. “Sometimes, I seem to forget you're just a student. You should get going if you want to catch the trains early.”

Akechi nodded as he finally gathered his paperwork in a neat pile and tucked them into his briefcase. With a firm grip on the handle, he turned back to Sae, prepared to give her his regards as he left.

He was halfway through the doorway when Sae spoke again.

“By the way, good work. We've received confessions from multiple suspects of vampire-related crimes.”

Akechi turns his head back to her. “I'm flattered,” Be modest. Act humble. Even if he felt his blood thrumming from the praise. “But I wouldn't say that it's all thanks to me. Everyone on the force helped as well.”

Sae smiled back. “You're a good kid, Akechi-kun.”

Then, her eyes moved away from their retained eye contact. Lower, as her eyes narrowed slightly and her smile turned into a frown. She was looking at his neck.

“Akechi-kun, is that-”

“Well, I suppose I'll be going now. Don't want to miss my train,” Akechi laughed lightly, turning away sharply, away from his co-worker. His hand twitched on the doorknob as he fought the urge to pull up the collar of his dress shirt, but doing so would only further any of her suspicions.

He slammed the door closed before he could hear a response.

 

* * *

 

Once outside of the building and from Sae’s constricting gaze, Akechi pulled on his collar harshly, feeling the soft threads stretch in protest. She couldn't have seen anything, he had made sure of that.

And now that she suspected, he would have to think up of an excuse that would placate her. More unnecessary work for something so insignificant.

He could tell her that he had a girlfriend, but that would only bring up more unnecessary questions. Bug bites? It was the middle of September.

The truth?

Akechi huffed up a laugh. As if he could get away with that. Sae may be a fool with a soft spot for him, but even she wouldn't turn a blind eye if she discovered that the prodigy young detective dedicated to putting vampires behind bars was secretly a personal blood bag for one. The mere thought sent a tinge of disgust down his throat and into his gut.

He sighed. No point thinking about it now.

He had recently solved another case, one involving a murder perpetrated by a bloodthirsty vampire upon an innocent civilian. The vampire himself came right up to the police station and confessed his crimes then and there, in front of the entirety of the Tokyo police force. It had been the third confession in two weeks. Another filthy criminal brought to justice.

Two weeks meant that it was about time he had to pay a visit to his… Informant. Assistant?

If anything, he was Akechi’s personal pain in the neck. Figuratively and literally.

Akechi had no need to contact him. He would always seem to know, and Akechi would always never understand. It was a preferable arrangement. A deal.

The crowd of people began to thin as he walked away from the more populated areas and into the old back alleys of the neighborhood. That was good. Nobody needed to know what Akechi Goro was doing wandering around the backstreets of Tokyo.

He found himself in a familiar alleyway between an old and empty enough apartment building and a store that had long gone out of business, flanked by an empty street and a rusty metal fence that he would place his briefcase against. It smelled like rotting garbage and vomit and it was the only place Akechi would allow himself to be eaten in.

In a way, it was perfect.

“Joker,” Akechi said. “I'm here.”

It was all he needed to say as he heard the rustle of clothing pierce through the silence. Two familiar arms wrapped around his middle as something cold nuzzled into his neck. He felt Joker breathe in deeply. His neck tingled in discomfort.

“Mm,” Joker hummed. “You smell nice today.”

Akechi frowned and pulled away, leaving a good amount of space between them. “Don't give me that nonsense. I told you not to bite so high up.”

Joker recovered quickly, sliding his hands into the pockets of his pants. He tilted his head and looked at Akechi amusingly. “What, did someone notice?”

Akechi felt a flash of heat trail up his face. “No,” he said. “I noticed it myself. This isn't a part of our deal.”

He watched as Joker shrugged; a careful movement despite the nonchalance of it all. “I might have gotten a little carried away last time.” He moved to lean against the wall. “Sorry.”

It hardly sounded like he meant it at all.

But it was fine. It didn't matter to Akechi, as long as it didn't happen again. If Joker was serious about keeping their little arrangement, he'd be more careful from now.

“So,” Joker spoke again. “The guy who committed murder last month. He turned himself in, yeah? Confessed his crimes?”

Akechi nodded. A change of subject. Good.

He didn't know how Joker was able to do it, but ever since their first meeting in early June when they agreed on their deal, he was able to somehow assist in the arrests of almost every suspect of Akechi’s cases. Sometimes he was able to find evidence the police couldn't, sometimes he had vital information no one else could possibly know. And sometimes, such as the most recent ones, the suspect confessed to every single one of their crimes. As if they had a change of heart. It could perhaps, be chalked up to Joker being a vampire himself, but Akechi couldn't help but shake the feeling that there was something deeper. Something he had to figure out.

But not now. It didn't help to question Joker’s methods. Not when Akechi was so close to accomplishing what he set out to do all these years ago. It was too late to change course.

“Yes, you performed your part of the deal perfectly,” Akechi said instead, and he reached up to loosen his tie and unbutton the top of his shirt, revealing the pale skin underneath. Joker’s dark eyes zeroed in on it immediately from under the thick fringe of his hair.

There was no use in stalling the inevitable. Now it was time to fulfill his own part. Akechi gestured to his neck. “Here, drink up.”

Joker laughed lightly, a deceptively gentle sound that reminded Akechi of warm summer nights. “Not even a thank you?” he asked, pushing himself off the wall. “And here I thought you to be kind, detective.”

“Aren't I thanks enough?” Akechi replied with mock of a TV smile. “I thought I was being quite generous with our deal.”

Joker returned it with a smirk of his own. “You're always on about that,” he said. He stepped forward once, then twice, crossing the distance between them until he was close enough that Akechi could feel his breath. His voice dropped down to above a whisper. “Aren't you at least a bit happy to see me?”

His hand reached up to touch Akechi’s neck, and the sudden cold of his hand set goosebumps across the smooth skin. Joker’s thumb rubbed against a tender patch, where he had bitten the last time they met. The puncture wounds were gone, leaving only faint red marks as proof of their encounters.

Akechi shivered from the surprisingly gentle touch.

“It's a shame that they heal so quickly,” Joker murmured, still running his thumb across the blooms of red.

Akechi swallowed something from the back of his throat. “Just get on with it already.” His own voice sounded rough and hoarse.

Joker’s smirk deepened as he gently guided Akechi backwards until the detective’s back came in contact with the wall behind him. He dipped his head down, nestling into the area between Akechi’s neck and shoulder. He could hear Joker breathing in slowly.

“...Are you smelling me?” Akechi looked down, facing the top of Joker’s head.

There was a pause. “I haven't fed in a while.”

Akechi sighed. “Don't take too much then. I still have work tomorrow.”

“I promise.” It was said so casually that Akechi had half the mind to remind him again until Joker moved from the sniffing to idly mouthing his skin. It made him twitch.

Joker continued to play with his neck, trailing up and down, going from light biting to pressing his lips against it.

It was always like this.

Joker liked to play during his meals. Whenever the time came for him to feed, he would always mess around with Akechi’s neck and left all sorts of marks other than those of his fangs. Akechi hated it. It was always so deceptively affectionate to the point where it disgusted him to his very core.

All of it was completely unnecessary.

He reached up to tug impatiently at Joker’s dark locks, hoping to speed things up. Instead, Joker made a purring noise and swept his tongue over a patch of skin, making Akechi shiver.

So that was how he wanted to play. That was fine—Akechi knew the game well enough. He sighed again.

“Joker,” he said breathlessly. “Please.”

That seemed to get the ball rolling, and Joker finally settled on an area in the juncture near Akechi’s neck, just above his collarbone. Gloved hands settled around his waist as Joker pushed closer to him, leaving him stuck against the wall.

Akechi sucked his breath at the initial pain of Joker’s fangs piercing his flesh. It stung sharply, the wound throbbing as the vampire slid his fangs in deeper and applied more pressure. Akechi’s hand tightened reflexively in Joker’s hair, but it only seemed to spur the other further and cause him to press the detective even more against the hard wall behind them.

Akechi let it happen. At least Joker was considerate enough to bite somewhere lower this time.

Soon, the pain began to ebb away as Joker drank. The pain giving away to a numbing, tingling sensation that slowly spread from his neck to his shoulders. It felt, arguably, good, and Akechi hated himself every time his body decided to betray him like this. The feeling made him weak and compliant and humiliated.

He didn't know how long Joker drank for. Akechi could barely feel any of it anymore. His limbs felt like heavy weights pulling down on his body. His legs trembled and struggled to support himself and threatened to give. Akechi hissed through his teeth, hands scrambling to clutch at the smooth leather of Joker’s coat.

In response, Joker adjusted his hold, wrapping his arms tightly around Akechi’s waist to support his tired body. Akechi could feel himself giving away as he slid down the wall as his legs lost their last remaining strength. There was a vaguely sticky feeling trailing down his neck; probably his blood staining his shirt, ruining it.

Akechi wished he could find the will in himself to care.

He wished he had the will to be concerned about how his legs were probably going to cramp after this or how his pants were damp from the dirty ground or how much blood Joker was actually taking, but everything just felt numb. It was like he wasn't even in his own body anymore. But in the back of his mind he knew this was too much. Joker never took this long to feed.

Akechi tried to call out the vampire’s name, but his tongue felt heavy and dry within his mouth. All that came out when he spoke were slurred words and a low whine. How humiliating. He tried again and found better success the second time.

“J-Joker,” he stuttered, unable to form complete words. “Taking. T-too much.”

Joker stopped immediately, as if broken from a spell. He released his mouth from Akechi’s neck, the sliding out of his fangs causing Akechi to shiver slightly from the loss. He looked up at Akechi, lips stained bright crimson with fresh blood. A pink tongue peeked out lick the corners.

“Like honey,” Joker murmured lowly, his blood red gloves coming up to brush away the hair sticking to Akechi’s forehead. His voice cut clean through the static in Akechi’s ears.

“What…?” Akechi felt lightheaded. Blood loss.

Joker’s eyes bore into him, dark but as red as his gloves and the blood on his lips.

“Your blood,” Joker answered as if entranced. “Tastes like honey.”

Akechi felt his face scrunch up in confusion. He had no idea what Joker was going on about. He wanted to ask again, but he felt too tired. The numbness was finally fading and his head began to throb along with the aching bite wound.

It seemed like Joker was still speaking, but Akechi had long stopped paying attention to what he was saying and was focusing the last of his remaining brain function on the deep, glistening red of his own blood still smeared across Joker’s mouth. It shone so beautifully, still wet and probably warm in the evening light. Akechi’s hand twitched at his side.

Joker had said something about his blood tasting like honey.

He wondered if it was true.

He managed to bring his hand up to cup Joker’s cheek and leaned forward so that they were forehead to forehead. Joker stilled, stopping whatever he was doing in anticipation for whatever Akechi had planned. He smelled like the coppery tang of blood.

Joker’s lips parted and his red eyes fluttered closed.

Akechi’s did as well.

And then he fainted.


	2. two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joker then grinned, impish and playful. “Maybe instead of calling you ‘detective’ I could just call you ‘honey’. It fits, don't you think, honey?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> part two that i wrote months after the first so you can tell my writing style kinda changed while i wrote this lol
> 
> there's still not really a plot but hey, there's a whole lot of akira flirting so i hope that makes up for the quality

Akechi awoke to a stained white ceiling and glowing stars. He sat up with a jolt upon realizing that his surroundings were unfamiliar to him and that he was apparently lying in a stranger’s bed. He looked to the window next to him. It looked to be morning. He had been unconscious for at least an entire night, if not longer.

His neck ached acutely, reminding him of the events that had transpired the previous evening. Joker had taken too much blood and Akechi had fainted. He must have been picked up by some concerned passerby after Joker left him in that alley. He groaned and ran his fingers through his messy bedhead. Not only did he have to deal with Sae about the marks, but now he had to come up with a way to explain to a stranger why he was found bleeding out from a bite wound in some dirty alleyway.

He reached up to touch the bite, now neatly bandaged, and cursed to himself when it still stung. He was going to have a word with Joker about this. Then, he realized he was wearing completely different and unfamiliar clothes. A black sweatshirt and green sweatpants. His other clothes must have been ruined from his blood.

After inspecting himself and satisfied that there was nothing else out of place on his person, Akechi took a surveying look around the room he awoke in. It was surprisingly tiny, befitting of a storage room than an actual bedroom. Next to the bed, there was a shelf of various odd items with no real connection to each other, and on the other side of the room was a sturdy looking desk and old couch and television set. It seemed like whoever lived here tried to make it as homely as possible. The room itself smelled oddly of coffee beans.

Suddenly, Akechi sneezed. It was also surprisingly dusty.

He sneezed again and soon heard footsteps coming up from the stairs across the room. Emerging from the stairs was a boy wearing a green apron and carrying a plate and a cup.

Akechi was about to open his mouth to say something, but soon noticed the boy's familiar curly black hair and eyes so sharp that the large, thick-rimmed glasses he wore did little to hide their mischievous gleam.

“Hey,” Joker smiled, gentle and warm like his voice. “How are you feeling?”

“...Joker?”

“You still look a little pale. Here.” Joker held the glass cup in front of Akechi’s face. “I was going to make you coffee, but I read online that drinking water is better after you've lost blood.”

Akechi eyed the cup as if Joker had just offered him poison. “What?”

“I took a bit too much last night.” Joker looked apologetic. “You fainted so I brought you back to my place since there's less people on the way here.” He pushed the glass of water closer, urging Akechi to take it.

After a few seconds, Akechi did and sipped at it. He was more thirsty than he thought. He quickly finished half of it and handed it back to Joker.

“Why-” Akechi’s voice came out weirdly. He coughed and continued, “Why did you bring me here?”

Joker grabbed a chair from the deal desk and placed the plate and empty glass on the seat before sitting himself down near the foot of the bed. Akechi immediately brought his knees up to his chest to avoid contact. “Like I said, you fainted and-”

“And who's fault was that?” Akechi snapped.

Joker frowned. “Mine. Again, I’m really sorry about that.”

That was odd. Joker usually never showed any part of himself that wasn't his infuriatingly cocky attitude. He wasn't this talkative either. Or, rather, he never spoke sensibly in a way that didn't absolutely get on Akechi’s nerves. Seeing Joker like this, bathed in the bright light shining through the window, made his features look softer and less sharp than what Akechi was used to. He looked more human than vampire, and it was unsettling.

This wasn't Joker, who pushed and pulled and danced around Akechi in useless circles; this was someone else.

“-and I couldn't leave you, so I decided...” Joker trailed off, noticing Akechi’s silence. “Detective?”

“You're different.”

Joker blinked. “What was that?”

“I mean,” Akechi said. “You're acting strangely. Aren't you going to tease me or say something embarrassing like you always do?”

“Why? Do you _want_ me to tease you?” Joker smiled. “I didn't realize you liked it.” And there was that familiar annoying personality again.

Akechi bristled. “That's not what I meant and you're well aware of that.”

“I know,” Joker answered, shaking his head and causing his hair to fall into his eyes. “I thought I'd spare you from it, for a while at least. Didn't want to stress you out more than necessary.”

“Oh, so you admit that you do it to irritate me then?”

“Some stress is healthy. I'm just looking out for you, detective.”

Akechi scoffed at that. “Forgive me if I find that a little hard to believe then.” He pointed at his bandaged neck.

He hoped that would have drawn a reaction from the vampire, but Joker didn't seem to look all too hurt from his words.

“I was telling the truth when I said I hadn't fed in a while,” he replied, adjusting his glasses. “The last time was during our last meetup.”

“You haven't eaten at all until yesterday?” Akechi looked at him incredulously. He hadn't even noticed. Joker had still acted the same way he usually did.

From what Akechi knew, vampires usually fed at least once a week. For Joker to have waited over two weeks meant that he literally had to have been starving himself until they met up again.

Joker shrugged in response and rubbed the back of his neck. Akechi recognized the gesture to be dismissive.

Akechi found himself getting angry at Joker’s idiotic recklessness. “Why did you wait until yesterday? Any longer and you could have faced serious consequences.”

“I was fine.” Joker was starting to look bothered now. Good. “I don't feed with anyone except you.”

Akechi froze, anger extinguished. That wasn't what he was expecting. “What?”

“You're,” Joker paused like he was struggling to find words. “You're special. I can only drink your blood without wanting to throw up.”

Special. He was special? Akechi hated what those simple, insignificant words made him feel. A blush threatened to form on his face.

But at the same time, he was curious. Vampires were never known to be particularly picky eaters, and yet there was one who refused to drink from anyone who wasn't Akechi. It's the first time he has ever heard of it. Joker was truly unique in ways he could have never imagined.

“But why would that be the case? What makes _me_ so special?”

“You just taste different,” Joker said before explaining further. “Blood usually tastes sour or rotten to me, but with you… It's the complete opposite.”

That made Akechi briefly remember the one thing from yesterday evening that stood out to him during his blood loss-induced haze. He didn't write recall clearly what he did but he was at least able to string his disconnected memories together in his own mind to remember what he had heard.

“You…” Akechi wrapped his arms around his knees, resting his chin on them. “You said my blood tasted like honey.”

“Ah. I did, didn't I?” Joker chuckled. “You know, I meant it. Your blood’s sweet and rich, just like honey.”

Akechi coughed purposefully into his hand. It was strange hearing someone else describe how his blood tasted like, especially when to himself, it just tasted of liquid copper. It didn't really sit right.

Joker then grinned, impish and playful. “Maybe instead of calling you ‘detective’ I could just call you ‘honey’. It fits, don't you think, _honey_?”

Akechi breathed out a sigh, glad that Joker changed topics despite how ridiculous of one it was. He rolled his eyes. “I doubt we're at the stage of our relationship where that would be acceptable.”

“Aw,” Joker pouted and looked at Akechi through his lashes. “I thought we were already far past that stage, honey. We're so close that you could even call me ‘Akira’ if you wanted to.”

Akechi stopped. “‘Akira’?”

“My name.” Joker instantly sobered. “Kurusu Akira.”

“You-” Akechi’s breath caught in his throat, seizing up his next words. “Why are you telling me _now_ of all times?”

Why would he choose that exact moment to give a real name to a face Akechi had already long known and associated with “Joker”?

“I already told you,” the vampire said, still smiling. “I thought we were already passed that stage in our relationship.”

“We haven't, Joker. What we have is purely business.” Akechi shook his head vehemently, curling up further into himself.

“Hm,” the other hummed amusingly. “You're wearing my clothes and you’ve slept in my bed. That hardly sounds like business to me.”

Akechi flushed with embarrassment. “Joker-”

“Akira.”

“ _Joker_.”

“Akira.”

“Fine. _Kurusu_.”

Kurusu sighed wistfully. “Close enough, I guess. We can work on it later.”

“Absolutely not. I don't know where you're planning to go with this but-”

A low grumbling sound resounded within the room, surprising both him and Kurusu. After that there was a brief moment of silence until it was broken again by the same low noise. Akechi looked down, this time fully feeling the effects of his stomach growling. He suddenly remembered that he hadn't eaten at all since yesterday in the afternoon, and the thought of food made his stomach rumble again.

And to think only a few minutes prior he had been admonishing Kurusu for his eating habits when his own wasn't exactly the perfect example of health either.

He was taken out of his thoughts when he heard a snort of laughter from Kurusu’s end of the bed. He looked back up to see the vampire using a hand to cover up the smile that bubbled on his lips. Akechi glowered at him.

“Sorry,” Kurusu said, voice shaky from suppressed laughter. “I was thinking you'd be hungry, so I brought this with me.” He gestured to the plate on the chair across from him. Akechi hadn't bothered to look at what the contents of the dish was as he was distracted by Kurusu’s presence, but upon further inspection it looked to be a plate of curry.

Kurusu then pushed the chair to Akechi’s side. The curry looked and smelled good, making Akechi’s stomach cry out in plea. He made no motion to eat it.

“It might have gotten a little cold, but it's still good,” Kurusu said. Then he added pridefully, “I made it myself.”

“...I thought vampires had no need for human food.” Akechi side-eyed the curry.

“We don't exactly need it to survive, yeah,” Kurusu agreed. “But it's a part of my job to make it. Just try it.”

Akechi frowned and looked away. “No, I don't want to impose. I should probably be going, anyways.” He turned, giving away to his natural instinct to flee. “I've overstayed my welcome far enough.”

“Wait.” Kurusu reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder, the cold if his hand seeping into Akechi’s skin through the clothes. He froze, skin buzzing as if electric. Kurusu continued, “At least eat something before you go.”

Akechi looked into Kurusu’s eyes and Kurusu stared back at him, dark grey hidden behind thick lenses. They were so different from the deep, suffocating red when he drank Akechi’s blood.

He was sure Kurusu could feel the shiver when he recalled the hunger in those red eyes.

But now, those eyes were telling him to stay.

So stay he did.

“I’m leaving right after,” he said a few seconds later.

“Okay. You can.”

Carefully, Akechi shook Kurusu’s hand off his shoulder and turned back to the plate of curry on the chair in front of the bed. He continued staring at it and his stomach still called for sustenance.

From the corner if his eye, he saw Kurusu move closer until their hands were only centimeters apart. Akechi prided in himself for not getting startled. The vampire looked at the his hands, and then went back to looking at the curry.

“What?” Akechi asked, feeling somehow threatened by Kurusu’s presence next to him. He didn't like where this was going.

“Nothing,” Kurusu replied with a tone of exaggerated innocence. He became quiet for a moment, but right after his face slowly split into a smirk. “You haven't even touched your food yet.”

Akechi definitely didn't like this.

Kurusu’s smirk grew impossibly bigger. “Do you want me to feed you?”

Immediately, Akechi grabbed the spoon lying next to the plate and scooped a large amount of curry and rice into his mouth. Like hell was he going to let Kurusu make a fool out of him. He would never be able live it down.

The taste that hit his tongue was a mild spice mixed with something unexpectedly sweet. The contrasting flavors blended naturally in his mouth and he found it to be quite delicious. After the first spoonful, he quickly went in for more. He never expected a vampire like Kurusu to have a talent in curry making.

“So? What did you think?” Kurusu asked once Akechi finally swallowed the last bite.

“It was very good,” Akechi found himself saying. “It was unlike any curry I've had before. Although I didn't expect it to be so sweet.”

Kurusu glowed with self-satisfaction at the praise, reminding Akechi of a cat. “I’m glad you liked it. Wanna know my secret to making it?”

“Not really, but I suspect you're going to tell me anyways, aren't you?”

“Yep.” Kurusu nodded smugly. “The secret ingredient is _love_.”

“...I should be disappointed in myself for thinking that you would give a serious answer,” Akechi groaned, dragging a hand down his face.

“Hey, I _am_ being serious here.” Kurusu sounded hurt, but Akechi knew better than to believe in the act. “I made it with you in mind.”

“Oh?” Akechi said dryly. “How so?”

“I put honey in it to make it just as sweet as you.”

Akechi felt his neck and ears prickle with heat. Kurusu was being insistently and annoyingly flirtatious this morning, and it was getting harder and harder for Akechi to ignore him.

He breathed in and out slowly to calm himself. It didn't help to get worked up. That's right, he told Kurusu that he would be leaving after the meal. He couldn't stay here any longer, else the line between them blur any further than what it was doing now. He would leave, and Kurusu would go back to being Joker. It was as simple as that.

With effort, Akechi pushed himself off the bed, freezing up when his bare feet hit the cold wood floor and a dull ache ran down his legs. He hissed quietly.

“Where are my clothes?”

Kurusu watched him silently with an unreadable expression on his face and rose from the bed as well. “I couldn't really get all the blood out of your shirt, so you're going have to borrow some more of mine.” He crossed the room to another shelf near the stairs.

“That's fine,” Akechi replied absently. “As long as I can cover up my neck.”

Kurusu brought a box out from the shelves and rummaged through, pulling out Akechi’s unruined pants from yesterday and a plain black shirt and grey hoodie. He held them up in Akechi’s direction.

Akechi accepted them and began to strip, starting with the shirt. He was halfway in putting it on when he felt Kurusu’s eyes on him and reminded himself of the vampire’s presence.

He was changing clothes in front of a vampire who could easily drain him of all his blood. Could easily _kill_ Akechi, if he wanted to. And just because Kurusu hadn't yet didn't mean he _couldn't_. Akechi couldn't believe how carelessly he allowed his guard to be let down like this. He pulled the shirt on completely and crossed his arms, turning to Kurusu with an impatient look on his face.

“Sorry,” Kurusu said, pushing his glasses up and hiding his eyes. “I promise I won't look anymore.” Then, true to his word, he turned his back to Akechi.

“Good.” And Akechi finished changing. He looked down at his clothes. They didn't exactly make the most professional outfit, but the hoodie was able to cover up most of his lower neckline and when he pulled the hood up, the bandages were barely visible unless someone were to look hard enough. He would change into something more suitable once he returned home.

Wait.

“Kurusu, do you have the time?” he asked, looking around the room for any sort of way to tell the time and finding nothing. He supposed vampires had a better internal clock than humans did.

“It's…” Kurusu thought for a moment. “Probably around half past eleven. Didn't you have to go to work today?”

“Eleven!?” Akechi exclaimed. “Oh no, I'm late.” He frantically searched for the rest of his attire, pulling on his socks and almost putting his shoes on the wrong feet. He only had them halfway in before he gave up on them and bolted down the stairs. He didn't bother to check if Kurusu was following him down or not.

In his panic, he barely got a glimpse at the bar counter and coffee siphons to his left and payed them no mind before getting to the door. There was a sign on it that said “open” facing his direction.

“The door’s open,” Kurusu called from behind.

He had one hand on the door’s handle when something gripped his other wrist lightly. He turned his head, almost surprised that Kurusu reached him with such speed.

“What are you-?” Akechi tripped over his own words. He was out of breath.

Kurusu silenced him by leaning in and pressing his lips to the corner of Akechi’s mouth. A kiss. Akechi felt like the rest of what little breath he had left was instantly knocked out of him. The kiss was brief and chaste, almost innocent when compared to Kurusu’s normal lasciviousness. It left Akechi’s mind reeling and his face burning.

It ended as fast as it came, and Kurusu was already pulling away by the time Akechi had fully processed what had happened.

Then, slowly, Kurusu grinned at him, sly and full of teeth and sharp fangs. “Have a nice day at work, honey.”

Akechi thought he might have broken the door on his way out with how hard he pulled.

 

* * *

 

It was not, in fact, a nice day at work.

When he arrived at the police station hours later than intended, he was met with questionable stares at his attire and tardiness, along with a firm scolding from Sae, who, thankfully, had not mentioned anything about the incident from the day before.

It was only when he was finally able to get away from her and back to the privacy of his desk that he felt something buzz within the pocket of his borrowed hoodie. He reached in and pulled out his phone, which he never recalled putting into the hoodie in his haste to leave, but he had a feeling that Kurusu had something to do with it being on his person now.

His suspicions were proven when he opened a few unchecked messages and saw:

> **> Akira: By the way, you left your briefcase here. I promise I didn’t look inside.**
> 
> **> Akira: You can have it back when you come to return my clothes.**
> 
> **> Akira: Also I lied. I got bored and looked inside. I don’t know what I was expecting.**

Along with the messages and the realization that Kurusu had added himself into Akechi’s contacts without his knowing, was an address to what Akechi could only assume to be where Kurusu lived and where Akechi left from earlier.

Akechi looked down at the messages in silence. He hated the idea of going and hoped he never had to see Kurusu ever again outside of their usual business meetings. He didn’t want to ever return if he could help it, but his briefcase contained important documents about his cases that would be needed soon, and the blame would fall on him if they were to disappear. He had hoped that he could just return Kurusu’s clothes the next time the other had to feed, but without his case files, he couldn’t do any work. It almost felt like a trap.

> **Akechi: You did this on purpose didn’t you. <**
> 
> **> Akira: Aw, I’m flattered. You give me too much credit, detective.**
> 
> **> Akira: But no, it just slipped my mind.**
> 
> **Akechi: That doesn’t sound very likely to me. <**
> 
> **Akechi: I believe that you planned for this to happen. <**
> 
> **> Akira: Well, on purpose or not, it worked right?**
> 
> **> Akira: You need your briefcase and I need you. It all works out.**

The sudden urge to throw his phone out the closest window came briefly to Akechi as he reread Kurusu’s last text message. He decided right then and there that he despised Kurusu Akira with his entire being.

But the words managed to catch onto something within him, a part of Akechi that was completely nonsensical and illogical. It, begrudgingly, made him feel the same as when Kurusu had called him special, giving him a light, airy feeling within his chest that made him cycle through a whirlwind of emotions that only left him nauseous at the end of it. Why did it have to be someone like Kurusu who made him feel like this?

During his thoughts, his phone made another noise, signalling another message.

> **> Akira: Unless you want me to bring it to the station for you.**

Akechi jolted up and scrambled to write a response before Kurusu could follow through on such a ridiculous suggestion.

> **Akechi: No. <**
> 
> **Akechi: Don’t you dare come here. <**
> 
> **Akechi: I’ll pick it up tomorrow. <**
> 
> **> Akira: Good.**
> 
> **> Akira: I’ll be waiting.**

Akechi lamented and raked a tired hand through his hair. Yet again, he found himself going along with Kurusu’s frivolous whims without so much as a second thought. It felt like Kurusu always had him right where he wanted him to be, twisted around his finger.

The bite on his neck itched along with the thought, as if his body was agreeing with his woes.

He placed his phone back on the desk face down, breathing out one more sigh to add to the steadily increasing amount of times he had already done so since first meeting  Kurusu. He didn’t even want to see or hear from him for at least the rest of the day, if not forever. He wanted to be left in peace for however long he was allowed to, but the image of Kurusu’s infuriating smirk refused to leave his mind. Even his own brain was betraying him now.

Call him a fool for even getting involved in the guiles of a vampire. At this point, the only one to blame was Akechi himself.

The phone went off again. A part of him already knew what it would say. 

> **> Akira: It’ll be a date.**
> 
> **> Akira:  <3**

And Akechi could only fume in silence with the memory of Kurusu’s lips on his at the forefront of his mind and the taste of honey still lingering on his tongue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading! i don't have any plans to continue this for now, but i do have a few ideas in mind if i ever do decide to revisit this au and expand on it in the future


End file.
